Chapter 560 - 21: The Manifestation of the Three Pure Ones! Maitreya, Go Probe His True Nature

A... sermon?

Throughout the ages, across the river of history, many were bewildered. What did this mean?

Some magnificent Dao Fruit Cultivators cast their gazes over, their expressions grave. They attempted to peer into the Daoist Palace but gained nothing. A Dao Fruit Cultivator’s gaze was blocked, unable to penetrate it!

The Buddha Mother frowned slightly, feeling a headache coming on. ’Where did this sacred being pop out from? There are more and more of these unknown existences appearing lately.’

First, it was that Hongjun Daoist, who could occupy all possible futures and leave even the Ancient Ones helpless.

Now, a bizarre Daoist Palace has suddenly materialized. It was inscrutable and indistinct, seeming half a step higher than even the Great Chaos, imposing its presence across all of time!

Other Dao Fruit Cultivators turned their attention to the Daoist Child standing before the Purple Cloud Palace, only to be struck by a sense of dazed confusion. They found themselves subconsciously forgetting the child.

The Ancient Bodhi Buddha, for instance, forced himself to focus, concentrating his Divine Thought to carefully observe the Little Daoist Child.

But all he saw was a patch of Chaos. Even as he stared right at the child, no trace of him could be left in his mind. The moment he looked away, he forgot his face!

’This is incredible. A mere Daoist Child of the palace can actually affect an Enlightened One. The master of that Daoist Palace, then...’

Within the Chaos, the Ancient Bodhi Buddha abruptly stood up, a look of deep apprehension in his eyes. He described this strange phenomenon to the Demon Ancestor and even summoned the Amitabha Buddha to discuss it.

"I cannot see him clearly either."

The Amitabha Buddha’s brow was furrowed as he said gravely,

"Even when I look right at him, I cannot describe or recount his appearance, features, or anything else. If I close my eyes, my thoughts show me only a void, with nothing concrete!"

"Strange, so strange..." A solemn look also appeared on the Demon Ancestor’s face, his fair-skinned palms clenching unconsciously.

"Could it be another kind of Transcendent Trait? But it doesn’t seem like it. What on earth is the origin of this Purple Cloud Palace? I’ve never heard of it before!"

"I do not know!" The Ancient Bodhi Buddha shook his head. "I have scoured all of time, observing all of Ancient History, and have found nothing!"

After a pause, he continued,

"An unknown Purple Cloud Palace Master, and an absurd Daoist Child who cannot be described, remembered, or even imagined..."

The two [Enlightened Ones] and the Demon Ancestor all had furrowed brows. They looked up at the grand and majestic Daoist Palace, watching as living beings from across time walked toward it, their expressions solemn.

"Perhaps... we should go and see?"

The Buddha Mother asked tentatively from the side.

"The Purple Cloud Palace Master invited the Human Race. Besides, he is too mysterious. Even a Daoist Child seems to possess unfathomable abilities. It’s best not to offend him. We should observe for now."

As those Dao Fruit Cultivators were conversing, Xiaohuo’Er, borrowing the Profound Mysteries of the Daoist Palace, sent a great sound echoing through the ages, announcing it to all places of existence and non-existence.

「Before the Purple Cloud Palace.」

Soon, he saw a being fumbling his way forward, treading carefully and cautiously along the Chaos Ladder that extended from the front of the Daoist Palace.

"State your name!"

Xiaohuo’Er called out casually.

"Celestial Son of Zhou, Ji Fa!" the middle-aged man replied. His expression was cautious, his eyes filled with curiosity as he sized up the Daoist Child.

But he was shocked to find that his mind could not form any concept of the child’s appearance. He looked, and he perceived nothing!

He was somewhat taken aback. He then raised his head to gaze at the majestic Daoist Palace.

Above the Daoist Palace, five lights shone and ten colors blazed. A purple aura ebbed and flowed, and through it, one had the illusion of witnessing the magnificent spectacle of the Creation of Heaven and Earth.

Looking closer, the Celestial Son of Zhou could even see his own figure within the brilliant lights and Profound Mysteries of the purple aura, reflecting his past, present, and even his future!

"This is..."

The Celestial Son of Zhou’s heart trembled. He then heard the strange Daoist Child yawn and say,

"Celestial Son of Zhou? Hmm, never heard of you... You’re the first one. Why don’t you go in first?"

The Celestial Son of Zhou was about to bow and respond when he heard footsteps from the long Chaos Ladder behind him.

He glanced to the side, his expression changing drastically. He subconsciously retreated three steps, his face becoming extremely grave!

"Announce yourself!" Xiaohuo’Er called out.

"Great Merchant King, Emperor Xin."

The imposing man walked with the stride of a dragon and the gait of a tiger. As he drew near, he glanced at the Celestial Son of Zhou and frowned slightly.

"You are... the son of Duke Xi Bo, Ji Chang?"

The two were clearly not from the same period of time; one came before the other.

The Celestial Son of Zhou realized this as well, and his heart filled with even greater awe for the profound power of this Daoist Palace. After a moment’s hesitation, he nodded slightly.

"Yes."

Emperor Xin’s brow darkened. He gave Ji Fa’s Emperor’s Robe an indifferent glance and smiled faintly.

"A subject wearing an Emperor’s Robe. How wonderful..."

Ji Fa raised an eyebrow and was about to respond when a series of footsteps approached.

The Last Human King and the First Celestial Son both looked over at the same time.

On the Chaos Ladder, four men were walking up side by side.

"State your na— Oh, you don’t have to. I recognize you."

Cao Mengde, Yuan Shao, Sun Jian, and Liu Bei looked at each other in confusion. ’Who is this Daoist Child?’

Although they had all seen Xiaohuo’Er before, he had not left the slightest impression on them, nor did they have any memory of him at all.

Cao Cao’s gaze swept over the two men in Emperor’s Robes. He gave a slight bow and asked politely,

"Might I ask who you two are?"

"Great Merchant King, Emperor Xin."

"Celestial Son of the Great Zhou, Ji Fa."

"COUGH, COUGH, COUGH..."

The four of them broke into violent coughs, their expressions turning strange. ’King Zhou of Shang and... King Wu of Zhou??’

Stunned, the four men felt a chill in their hearts. They subconsciously looked toward the magnificent Daoist Palace and couldn’t help but swallow hard.

’This Daoist Palace had appeared abruptly at an infinite height, dropping down a Chaos Ladder. Many had tried to climb it, but all had failed. Only the four of us were the first to succeed...’

As a thousand thoughts raced through their minds, the sound of footsteps arose again. No, it wasn’t the sound of footsteps. It was more like... the sound of kowtowing.

Everyone turned to see a dying old man with a full head of white hair, his body weathered by time. He had started from some great world, stepped onto the Chaos Ladder, and was kowtowing with every single step!

"I, Liang, do not know which sacred being this is, but with a heart for cultivation, you must be compassionate!"

"I, Liang, kowtow and beseech the Supreme Venerable to save my homeland, to right the toppled heavens, to extinguish the White Lotus, to strike down the Great Sun Buddha, and to slay the Venerable Buddha!"

"Uncle Zhong!" Liu Bei cried out in shock. He rubbed his eyes fiercely, a sharp pain stabbing at his heart.

This person, who had approached by kowtowing with every step, was clearly Zhuge Kongming!

But... but he had lost his heroic and dashing presence, and there was no sense of the master strategist about him. All that could be seen was the harshness of time and a deep, sorrowful grief!

"You... How have you grown so old?" Liu Bei’s eyes reddened.

Zhuge Kongming kowtowed until he was near, then shakily raised his head. He gazed at Liu Bei and coughed violently.

"Your... Your Majesty!"

Emperor Xin and Ji Fa both cast curious glances his way. ’Your Majesty?’

’Another king?’

Zhuge Kongming’s hair and beard were completely white. He stared at Liu Bei and sighed softly,

"You are still so young... It seems you and I are not from the same period of time."

The hearts of Liu Bei, Cao Cao, and the others tightened.

Liu Bei quickly stepped forward to help Zhuge Kongming up. He carefully studied the old man’s wrinkled face and white hair, fighting back the bitterness in his heart.

"Uncle Zhong, from... when have you come?"

"You are an Immortal with a limitless lifespan. Why have you aged to this degree? What in the world happened?"

Old Zhuge coughed twice and sighed wearily,

"Your Majesty, your old servant comes from the two-thousandth year after the world was divided into four. The Human World has fallen into complete chaos. Those fighting and killing on the battlefield are no longer soldiers, but Immortal Gods."

"Daluo have entered the fray, and Dao Fruit Cultivators have descended in person, intending to use the Blood Refining Skill to absorb the bloodlines of thirty trillion members of the Human Race and refine them into the Human Dao Trend!"

As he spoke, tears welled up in Old Zhuge’s eyes.

"I might have been able to right the toppled heavens, but I failed when success was just within reach... Oh, vast Celestial Realm, why have you been so cruel to me!"

He wept, his body bent with age. Liu Bei’s eyes grew red as well, while Cao Cao, Sun Jian, and Yuan Shao’s expressions became incomparably grave!

’The Blood Refining Skill??’

’What was that?’

But then they heard the Celestial Son of Zhou speak in a low voice,

"The Human Dao Fortune exists within the bloodline of the Human Race. A Human King, a Celestial Son, or one who has rendered great service to the Human Race can gather the Human Dao Fortune. Another way is a crude and simple method: refine a sufficient number of people, extracting the Human Dao Fortune from every last trace of their bloodlines..."

He paused, his gaze lowering.

"This method is brutal, and the Human Dao Fortune obtained is impure. Moreover, it can only exist for a single breath. After that one breath, the Human Dao Fortune disperses..."

Emperor Xin frowned, shot him a sideways glance, and barked angrily,

"How do you know of such a vicious and cruel method?"

Ji Fa replied flatly,

"You’ve used it."

Emperor Xin began to cough violently.

Soon, at the Daoist Child’s impatient reminder, Liu Bei supported the elderly Zhuge, while Emperor Xin and Ji Fa kept a great distance from each other as they all walked toward the Daoist Palace.

As they stepped through the gates of the Daoist Palace,

the six of them felt their vision suddenly brighten and then darken. These two opposing and contradictory sensations of light and shadow emerged in their senses and minds at the same time.

Looking out into the distance, they saw a blurry figure of a Daoist seated at an infinite height.

The Daoist’s form and face were unclear. He was cloaked in a seventy-two-colored radiance, and around him, overlapping dark universes rose and fell.

One of his eyes was open and the other closed. One was yang, the other yin; one was Hun, the other Dun—the two components of Chaos.

From his closed eye, accompanied by a breath of Shangqing, flowed the meanings of destruction, finality, conclusion, and the very end.

And within his open eye, traits such as beginning, commencement, origin, and the Cause of All Fruits rose and fell.

With just a glance, just by gazing upon him, this figure—who was not particularly imposing in size—completely filled their vision.

To their senses, the Daoist was infinitely magnificent, infinitely vast, infinitely majestic, and infinitely high!

Ji Fa’s heart palpitated. He felt that the aura of this Daoist was almost comparable to that of the Primordial Great Celestial Venerable he had once seen.

He asked involuntarily,

"May I ask for senior’s revered name?"

The Daoist with one eye open and one eye closed spoke calmly. His voice was like rolling thunder, starting from this place and traveling back through the ages, transforming from a mere ripple into a great tide, a torrent,

reverberating through every single moment, ceaselessly!

"My name,"

"is Profound Origin Fusheng."

The great sound vibrated, and scenes of the Creation of Heaven and Earth, the colors of Nature and all things, and the likeness of the end of all worlds appeared together!

All the Dao Fruit Cultivators cast their gazes over, mulling over those three words.

"Profound Origin... Fusheng?"

The Ancient Bodhi Buddha’s brow darkened.

"The heavenly numbers have informed me that this person is... the Thirteenth Immortal of Jade Void."

"The Jade Void Lineage, since when was there a Thirteenth Immortal?" The Amitabha Buddha narrowed his eyes. "How could a junior of the Jade Void Lineage possess such an ability? I cannot see through him, cannot fathom him!"

The Demon Ancestor also spoke,

"In this voice, I see the color of the Primordial, the Form of the Supreme, and the aspect of the Spirit Treasure... I see the Existence of all things, I see the Cause of All Fruits, and I see the End of the great worlds."

The Dao Fruit Cultivators were filled with shock and suspicion. ’The Jade Void Lineage, the Thirteenth Immortal... how could he possess such power?’

’Could it be... a child born of The Three Pristine Ones together? The final hidden gambit of The Three Pristine Ones, manifesting at this very moment??’

Deep within the Chaos, a certain Blind Daoist was overjoyed, dancing and waving his arms, the smile on his face nearly overflowing!

"Profound Clarity? Profound Yellow?"

He was immensely pleased with himself, muttering,

"Neither of them can compare to my Profound Origin Fusheng! Be it the Direct Lineage of the Supreme or the little disciple of Shangqing, they can’t hold a candle to the Thirteenth Immortal of Jade Void! Ha!"

Just as the Blind Daoist was roaring with laughter, on the other side, where the Dao Fruit Cultivators had gathered...

A flash of understanding passed through Taiyi’s eyes, but he spoke calmly,

"This person has not yet attained the Dao Fruit, yet he possesses all sorts of absurd abilities. It’s quite miraculous... Could he be the product of The Three Pristine Ones jointly undergoing detachment, inheriting the Cause and Effect of all three and gathering their three Dao Fruits?"

Taiyi knew Lu Xuan best. He knew this was most likely him and guessed that Lu Xuan’s miraculous power probably came from this Daoist Palace or some other object.

But he deliberately spoke now to mislead them, causing the expressions of the other Dao Fruit Cultivators to change.

"It’s possible!"

"Most likely!"

"There’s a seventy or eighty percent chance!"

The Demon Ancestor abruptly rose to his feet, while the Ancient Bodhi Buddha’s face paled.

"We still need to test his true capabilities... Maitreya, you go knock on that Daoist Palace. Suppress it with your might!"

"???"

The Buddha Mother glanced at the three intertwined scrolls hanging above the three words "Profound Origin Fusheng" that echoed through time. He looked at the scene of Creation, the image of all things, and the aspect of final destruction.

Then he looked again at the grand, vast, and majestic Purple Cloud Daoist Palace, which seemed half a step higher than Chaos itself.

He pointed at himself with a wooden expression.

"Huh? Me?"